Sport

Moores overlooks Hants stars

Hampshire players were overlooked as Peter Moores names his first England squad since returning as head coach.

The squad contained no major surprises as a new-look selection panel opted for a familiar group for next week's one-day international against Scotland.

But that also meant no place for the likes of James Vince, despite his impressive start to the season.

Nottinghamshire's left-arm seamer Harry Gurney is the only uncapped player to make the trip to Aberdeen on May 9, though he toured West Indies with England earlier this year, while relative newcomers Gary Ballance and Moeen Ali retain their places in a 13-man party.

The squad is the result of the first meeting of a revamped selection group convened by James Whitaker and containing Moores, Angus Fraser and Mick Newell.

There are no shock omissions, though Michael Lumb might feel somewhat aggrieved after making a century on his ODI debut in February and Alex Hales may have fancied his chances in the 50-over format having hit England's first Twenty20 hundred in an otherwise miserable tournament in Bangladesh.

Steven Finn, meanwhile, has been left out once again as he strives to find both top form and consistency following a troubled winter.

Lumb and Hales both play under Newell at Nottinghamshire, while Finn is a protege of Fraser at Middlesex, and the omission of all three is an early indication that there will be no conflict of interest from England's two new selectors.

Gurney is one of only three specialist seamers alongside James Anderson, back on one-day duty for the first time since last summer, and seven-cap Chris Jordan.

Stuart Broad's persistent patella tendinitis rules him out, while Tim Bresnan has yet to play first-team cricket for Yorkshire this season.

Fast bowling all-rounder Ben Stokes is also recovering from the broken wrist sustained when he punched a locker in the Caribbean, opening the door for Chris Woakes' return.

The batting ranks look better stocked and more familiar, with captain Alastair Cook supported by regulars Ian Bell, Eoin Morgan, Ravi Bopara and Joe Root, who has fully recovered from a broken thumb. Ballance is rewarded for an impressive start to the season with Yorkshire and could soon find himself a three-format international, while Ali offers a handy spin option as well as runs.

The two positions that will have taxed the selectors least of all are wicketkeeper, where Jos Buttler is something of a shoo-in, and senior spinner, a position that James Tredwell has looked comfortable with since Graeme Swann's retirement.

The squad will meet at Loughborough for two days of training before heading to Scotland and will not be available to play in the round of LV= County Championship fixtures starting on May 4.